Fashion week S/S 2013 invitations: womenswear collections

A selection of the finest fashion week invitations from the womenswear collections to land in our laps this season

Words: Apphia Michael, Ellen Himelfarb, Rosa Bertoli
Book shelf: 'Flow Bookcase', starting from £1,550, by Kay and Stemmer for Heal's

Burberry Prorsum: Christopher Bailey celebrated London's skyline, recreating it in laser-cut pop-up form

Kenzo: A box covered in a bold, leafy camouflage - echoing S/S 2013 patterns - slid open to reveal a coordinating invitation card and irridescent stone engraved with the Kenzo tiger

Acne: Simplicity is always the MO at Acne, whose thick invitation came embossed with the company's identity in a sans-serif block font

Emporio Armani: Armani's clutch-like invitation envelope could also fit your cash and keys, if you were inclined to accessorise with it. The substantial card inside was printed with barely there silver text

Stella McCartney: Printed on holographic stock with iridescent edging, Stella McCartney's witty offering was affixed with a pair of 'drinking specs', a nod to the optical illusions created in her textural designs

Maison Martin Margiela: The geek in us appreciated this magic-slate invitation from Margiela, which revealed the show details when rubbed with a determined finger - before hiding them again once it had cooled down

Etro: A soupçon from Etro's wild paisley and flower print collection came in the post in the form of a floral-printed card and matching scarf, bordered in the brand's signature paisley

Gucci: Always good, and currently gold, Gucci's was a smooth white flip-up card propped up with a metallic band

Louis Vuitton: Models walked a yellow checkerboard catwalk and climbed a yellow-striped escalator at Louis Vuitton, so yellow was the natural choice for fuzzy-pipecleaner lettering on a perfect square of a card

Jil Sander: Minimalism on the runway, minimalism on the card. Jil Sander sent out just the facts in glossy black and white with a finish of bold red trim

Céline: Phoebe Philo's invitations were simple, streamlined and classic Céline - with a hint of psychedelic colour around the edge to lighten the mood

Paul Smith: Also in on the colour edging game, Paul Smith sent out this thick white card, outlining it with shades of yellow, moss green, beige and black

Damir Doma: An alluring textured wooden card announced Damir Doma's Paris show

Chloé: A classic invitation came complete with perfectly-formed calligraphy

Christopher Kane: The brand's Spring love affair with the hologram didn't just end on paper - the holographic effect was duly applied to his runway as well

Roger Vivier: Keeping the Parisian laser-cutters in business, Roger Vivier unveiled its latest feat: a metallic red overlay that unfolded to reveal a traditional scripted invitation

Tod's: Rivets and stitches were interpreted in silver on a black ground. The metallic print glowed with subtle irridescent colour

Miu Miu: The invitation and seat-marker from Miu Miu added substance to style. Card made from wood was stained toasty brown, edged in gold and affixed with a fabric label

Hermès: An origami artwork came in colours resembling tanned leather from Hermès, a nod to the brand's heritage and the architectural cut of the clothes

Haider Ackermann: Oversized handwritten-style lettering gave a striking graphic panache to a Haider Ackermann's rectangular card

Akris: Creative director Albert Kriemler paid homage to the great architect Roberto Burle Marx for his Spring collection. The sculptural invitation and press pack featured an abstract textured representation of Burle Marx's Banco Safra Headquarters roof garden in Sao Paulo

Fendi: Outlined in bright block hues, Fendi's invitation card hinted at the Spring collection creative director Karl Lagerfeld showed on the runway - indirectly influenced by the colours and architectural furniture shapes of Ettore Sottsass' Memphis design collective

Junya Watanabe: A grid of die-cut circles packed a punch on Junya Watanabe's futuristic silver offering

Givenchy: Following suit from the previous season, Givenchy sent out an invitation pack enclosed with a limited-edition print, elegantly numbered on the jacket of the folder. 'Carmine/Givenchy' by M/M (Paris), 2012, was the artwork for Spring

SW1: Paired with a powdery yellow and white palette, the subtle debossing effect on SW1's envelope and card drew all focus to the brand's logo

Margaret Howell: A multi-textural delight, enhanced by the all-cream card

Saint Laurent Paris: New creative director Hedi Slimane marked a new chapter for the house of Yves Saint Laurent by sending out a discreet black notebook, which opened up to reveal pages detailing different photographs of the brand's mesmerising Babycat print

Salvatore Ferragamo: An elegant die-cut logo adorns the brand's Spring invitation 

John Galliano: Bold and outsized, in jaunty Spring hues, Galliano's invitation came in a long glossy turquoise envelope. Inside it played with text and texture

Peter Pilotto: A bright neon background, contrasted with bold dark sans serif type

Mary Katrantzou: The themes of money and stamps - as seen in this oversized black postage stamp affixed with a copper penny - were the riffs on which Mary Katrantzou played in her print-heavy collection